III : Scream from the Deep 2

Two hours had passed since my talk with the fisherman, and I made my way down to the beach, where everyone else was already gathered.

Juan was already out in the sea with Sergio, who was lounging on an inflatable mattress.

The rest were scattered along the sand, sunbathing or playing volleyball.

At that moment, I turned to Margery and asked her to come with me out to where the two brothers were floating.

We set off toward them, swimming side by side.

They were about 20 to 30 meters from the shore.

We were getting closer, slowly closing the distance, when suddenly—Sergio’s float shot into the air, like something had struck it with terrifying force.

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Juan screamed.

But he wasn’t looking for what had caused it—

He was searching for Sergio.

At first, Margery and I froze, paralyzed by the shock. But somehow, we forced our limbs to move, swimming quickly toward Juan.

And then… what happened next is a scene none of us can ever forget.

Sergio burst out of the water, screaming for his mother and his brother—

—and then a great white shark lunged from below and dragged him under.

It was the shadow the fishermen had warned us about.

The shadow we had laughed off as just superstition.

That shadow changed everything.

Sergio never resurfaced.

The great white had taken him.

We could do nothing but stare helplessly at a sea now stained red with blood.

We rushed to Juan, who looked like a ghost—his body there, but his soul gone.

We grabbed him, pulling him back toward the shore, fearing the great white might still be lurking, ready to strike again.

Each minute in the water felt like a century.

I remember Juan’s face as we swam back—

His eyes locked on the place of the attack.

Empty.

The tragedy spread quickly.

Everyone mourned.

Sergio and Juan’s mother became the face of grief—

a figure frozen in unspeakable pain.

The shock was so deep that much of it is a blur in my memory.

What I do remember is Marjory holding my hand, and the others wrapping their arms around us—

trying to make us feel safe.

But the sea we loved was now dyed red with our friend’s blood.

And for the first time in my life…

I felt betrayed by my sea.